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It’s good to see registration is open for the second annual Cyber:Secured Forum, and that it’s in my “neck of the woods.” The Westin Dallas Park Central will welcome this conference that helps connect cybersecurity, physical security and systems integration, hosted by ISC Security Events, PSA Security Network and the Security Industry Association (SIA). It’s to be held July 29-31, one of the hottest times in Dallas might I add, so plan on drinking lots of water! Hydration is key during our hot, Texas summers.

(Tip: Walk or Uber over to the Circle K convenience store at 12950 Coit Rd., which is right beside the Westin, and buy water for your hotel room. Usually our convenience stores will have 2 bottles for $2, or some sort of sell.)

According to the SIA website, attendees can look forward to topics including global cybercrime trends, tools and technology for better cybersecurity of physical security systems, monetizing cybersecurity services, cyber-hardening of security systems and more, presented by IT and physical security professionals. The goals of the conference are to connect and share information on risks and liabilities, learn how to respond to cybersecurity threats and work toward establishing security control standards across IT systems.

Plan on attending the July 29th welcome reception, plugging into sessions and strolling around the exhibits displaying various solutions related to cybersecurity, and don’t forget to find me buzzing around. In fact, reach out now, gschlueter@securitysystemsnews.com, and let’s get something on the calendar – a booth visit, coffee, lunch – I’m open to pretty much anything. And of course, I can help you figure out the best places to eat and visit during your stay in Dallas.

I’m excited to attend the forum, meet with you, learn more about cybersecurity trends and what’s going on in that world, and how cyber and physical are successfully merging to keep people and infrastructure safe.

ADS Security, a regional electronic security and automation company based in Nashville, Tenn., has revealed they surpassed $4 million in RMR in 2018, including a record-setting eight companies in 2018, surpassing the previous record of seven acquisitions in 2016.

ADS achieved this mark through strong organic growth driven by a focus on providing legendary service and by maintaining a large acquisition pipeline.

“2018 was the best year in ADS’s history,” John Cerasuolo, president and CEO, swaid in the announcement. “We have built a strong culture and team of people who care about providing legendary service to our customers and to the security company owners we acquire. We are not slowing down and expect 2019 to be another record-setting year.”

After its inception in 1990, ADS achieved $2 million in RMR in 2012 and now has doubled that monthly revenue in about a quarter of the time. ADS Security’s $4 million in RMR is made up of more than 100,000 residential and commercial customer sites spread over 25 branch locations throughout the southeastern United States.

With a UL-listed monitoring center located in Nashville, ADS Security offers a full range of burglar, fire alarm, video surveillance, access control, and automation systems.

Cerasuolo told Security Systems News after the company’s latest acquisition back in December, that he us excited for similar growth in 2019.

“We have very high expectations for 2019. We’ve got a good number of deals that are in various stages along the process. So, we expect to come out of the gate pretty strong in 2019, in terms and acquisitions,” he said. “There’s no reason not to expect that we’ll have similar kind of results in [2019] that we had this year.”

ASSA ABLOY recently announced its new Preferred Installer program to help streamline deployments for installers and systems integrators.

Building on decades of experience in the higher education market, ASSA ABLOY has developed a national network of Intertek certified hardware installers who are highly skilled in providing physical installation of its integrated electronic locking devices.

“Systems integrators, who often face staff shortages, can take advantage of this network of installers to maximize their efficiency,” the company said in the announcement, noting that the ability to outsource this skill helps improve productivity, ensure a quality installation, and create a competitive advantage. “What’s more, when contracted through ASSA ABLOY, an additional year of warranty is provided for products installed by Preferred Installers. This program also helps end-users meet their deadlines, provides peace of mind with high-quality installations, and protects their investment with an extended warranty.”

“We have attended many a training class, and this is hands down the only class offered that is truly a hands-on course with an instructor that is more than qualified to teach,” Chad Smith, chief of operations at ACME Security Solutions, LLC, said in the announcement. “We had an amazing learning experience, and this is all owed to the instructor, who took this training above and beyond our expectations.”

ASSA ABLOY Preferred Installers are third-party certified by Intertek, which means the technicians are qualified to field prep Warnock Hersey labeled fire doors for the installation of specific ASSA ABLOY integrated locks and accessories while retaining the door’s fire resistance rating and compliance with NFPA 80. In addition, Intertek Qualified Personnel may apply supplemental serialized labels to doors they’ve prepped and after ASSA ABLOY hardware has been installed. This signifies to Authorities Having Jurisdiction and Fire Door Inspectors that the installation was completed in accordance with NFPA guidelines.

“The Intertek Qualified Personnel (IQP) ASSA ABLOY Hardware Installer program provides assurance that personnel conducting work in the field are fully qualified and that the work is done correctly each and every time,” Justin Hendricks, program manager - Openings Building & Construction, Intertek. “Participation in the program is also crucial to maintaining the door’s Intertek fire resistance rating and subsequent compliance with NFPA 80 guidelines.”

Lester LaPierre, director of business development, Electronic Access Control, ASSA ABLOY Door Security Solutions added: “ASSA ABLOY has provided installation services for many years across the country at our largest installations incorporating thousands of electronic access control locksets. We’ve learned that the outcome of each of those projects was quality workmanship and high productivity. This resulted in timelines being met, site issues and product returns being reduced, and, most importantly, satisfied integrators, general contractors, and end users. That’s why we’re expanding and formalizing this program so those same benefits can be applied across all opportunities.”

ASSA ABLOY Certified Integrators interested in using a Preferred Installer can simply log on to the Partner Area of www.IntelligentOpenings.com to find the Installation Services Quote Request form to begin the process. For dedicated hardware installation professionals interested in joining the ASSA ABLOY Preferred Installer network, please contact Lester LaPierre (lester.lapierre@assaabloy.com).

Look around in any public place, be it a hospital, stadium, park, retail outlet, bank and even on the shoulders of police officers, and you are likely to see at least one video camera. This sophisticated piece of equipment is recording and retaining data on the activities in its coverage area to ensure safety to people and infrastructure. Over the past 10 years, video cameras and surveillance systems have become a permanent fixture, perhaps so much so that some people don’t even realize the presence of cameras, and according to BIS Research, there is no evidence of this trend slowing down.

BIS recently released a new market intelligence report, “Global Video Surveillance Market – Analysis and Forecast, 2018-2023,” indicating the global video surveillance market is estimated to grow over $77.21 billion by 2023. This increase is driven by the rising demand for IP cameras, video content analytics (VCA) and Video Surveillance as a Service (VSaas) to help mitigate rising security concerns as well as the need for the security industry to provide highly efficient, time-saving surveillance systems at an affordable price, pointed out by BIS in their press release.

BIS also noted the camera market seems to be acquiring major market share within the video surveillance industry as seen by a proliferation of IP camera-based surveillance systems in response to increased consumer demand for more physical security.

Taking a global look with BIS, Asia-Pacific (APAC) led the global video surveillance market last year and is expected to maintain dominance within this five-year time frame, accounting for approximately 41.5% of net revenue generated by video surveillance equipment, in addition to enormous investments in future security-related projects in India and China. A rise in video surveillance demands is also expected from Europe, specifically from the UK and Germany.

The majority of end-users seek three important aspects when deploying a video surveillance system—cost effectiveness, increased safety and convenience. To fulfill these three demands and create a robust surveillance system, in my opinion, IP cameras, intelligent video analytics, video management systems (VMS), VCS and VSaaS must be incorporated.

Of course, with such technology comes issues of concern. Let’s discuss data protection, data surveillance laws, unskilled security professionals and more:• Do you believe the industry is creating ways to protect the data produced by the high-capacity storage required by IP-based video surveillance systems?• Do you feel there is a lack of data surveillance laws? If so, what laws should we consider passing?• Do you think there is a shortage of skilled security professionals available to manage the operation and software of IP-based surveillance systems?• According to this report’s executive summary – “Cameras are the most important part of any surveillance system.” Do you find this statement to true or false, and why?

I look forward to receiving your thoughts and opinions to get the conversation started, and to continue to explore the rapidly growing and expanding world of video surveillance.

“It’s good to be back.” This phrase has been running through my mind since I joined SSN’s editorial team as managing editor just a few days ago. I have fond memories of the security industry, and although a lot has changed and I have some re-learning to do, I’m refreshed and ready to take it on.

Having served the security industry previously for three years, and after about a four-year hiatus, I’m back to doing what I love: meeting industry professionals, writing and editing, being part of the security industry “family,” and shaking things up a bit with fun, conversational yet professional, honest and authentic commentary.

I am excited to engage again with industry leaders, build strong relationships, and share and report on newfound industry knowledge as well as establish and retain rapport with readers. I hope to inform, educate and inspire in my role at Security System News by assisting with editorial content, providing thought-provoking blog posts, participating in trade shows and chatting on social media.

I feel like I’ve returned home. I’m ecstatic to be a part of the SSN team and returning to an industry that truly impacts the world for the better.

Security Systems News is excited to announce the hiring of Ginger Schlueter as the new managing editor of the publication. Ginger brings three years of prior security industry reporting experience, as well as a proven track record in both print and online media, with particular expertise in social media.

As Ginger says in her first blog post today, she is happy to be back in the security industry after spending a few years away as a freelancer.

“I have fond memories of the security industry, and although a lot has changed and I have some re-learning to do, I’m refreshed and ready to take it on,” she said.

As I have been told by many in the industry, and as I told Ginger, “Once you’ve worked in the security industry, you can’t leave—it keeps pulling you back in.” Many in the industry I am sure can relate to this sentiment.

And while SSN is forever grateful to former managing editor Spencer Ives for the outstanding work he did here at the publication (good luck Spencer in your next endeavor!), we here at SSN are excited to have Ginger joining the team!

The Board of Directors of Digital Systems Corporation, the parent company of Galaxy Control Systems, a leading provider of integrated access control and security solutions, announced the appointment of Rick Caruthers to the position of president at Galaxy Control Systems. Effective immediately, this appointment reflects the company’s long-term planning and succession strategies.

“Rick has essentially been working in the capacity as president of Galaxy Control Systems for the past several years, and with this appointment will be able to execute his vision and goals for the company,” Robert Laughlin, chairman of Digital Systems Corporation, said in the announcement. “After 17 years of proven service and dedication to Galaxy Control Systems, we are most confident that Rick is the person best suited to be at the helm of this organization moving forward.”

Caruthers’ extensive experience and proven track record in the professional security industry spans over 28 years, where his career was initiated on the integration side of the business then migrated into the manufacturing space. Over 17 years to date, Caruthers has risen through the ranks in positions ranging from regional sales manager, government sales director, vice president of sales, executive vice president, to his current role as president of Galaxy Control Systems.

“I am extremely honored with the Board’s decision to entrust me with the continued expansion and growth of Galaxy Control Systems,” Caruthers said in the announcement. “There are so many exciting opportunities that lie ahead for Galaxy as we continue to evolve and supplement our portfolio of on-premise based and cloud access control solutions, and expand internationally. And we will maintain our focus on the core values that have propelled Galaxy Control Systems over the years, including exceptional customer service and outstanding quality hardware and software offerings that will remain designed, developed and manufactured in-house in the USA.”

The Galaxy Control Systems portfolio is centered on the company’s System Galaxy v11.02 and Cloud Concierge access control platforms, which accommodate the latest reader technologies and technology trends, as well as holistic VMS integration. The versatile offering provides resellers and users with the unique ability to implement the access control solution that best fits their specific needs and budget.

Caruthers told Security Systems News that some of his short-term goals for the company include bringing both the on-premises and cloud solutions together to provide one platform.

“Early on, our cloud development team worked to get the product up and running so I had two engineering efforts—our on-premises team and our cloud team,” he explained. “What we are doing now is merging the two together, so our focus is to let everyone know that the Galaxy product can be used on premises and in the cloud. We are basically building a platform around the philosophy that the only thing you need to decide is where your database is going to reside: Is it going to reside on a server on site, or is it going to reside in a hosted cloud environment, or in a hybrid set-up?”

He continued, “So all of the tools, the web interfaces, the client stations—every bit of the software behind that—works simultaneously and seamlessly with both. So we are moving those two platforms to one starting in 2019 and hope to have our software in at least a beta format by ISC West, along with a couple of new mobile apps.”

A key long-term effort is “strengthening our core intelligence inside our technology group to reflect that next generation of developers that is going to take us to the next 20 years,” said Caruthers, who noted that more and more clients are embracing cloud-based solutions.

“While SMB companies are certainly embracing cloud, some of our bigger corporate clients are adopting cloud for all of their applications,” he noted. “And many are doing it for cost savings, especially when considering the continual investments in refreshing servers and hardware that are required with on premises data centers or server rooms."

Mission 500 recently hosted a service trip in Ponce, Puerto Rico, where volunteers from the professional security industry worked on repairing the homes of two families still suffering from the effects of hurricane Maria in October of 2017.

“Our team of Mission 500 volunteers, including several of our children were able to not only improve the living conditions of these two families, we also helped to restore their sense of dignity with a little happiness and hope for a brighter future,” Alan Forman, president of Altronix Corporation, said in the announcement.

This year’s service trip to Ponce, Puerto Rico took place from Oct. 31 through Nov. 4 and raised $12,000, which was used to provide two families with extensive home renovations.

“The trip to Ponce, Puerto Rico was Mission 500’s third service trip, which aim to help families in need whether located here in the United Stated or abroad,” George Fletcher, advisory board member of Mission 500, said in a prepared statement. “In providing assistance to people in crisis, Mission 500 continues to bring together the growing community of security industry professionals who are looking to give back and make a difference.”

Tom Nolan, director of Strategic Partnerships for Mission 500, told Security Systems News that these trips end up being very rewarding for those who volunteer.

“At our first team meeting in Puerto Rico we instructed the team that as you participate in the work of helping those in desperate need it is very likely that the experience will have a greater impact on your life, personally, than on those you seek to help,” Nolan told SSN. “In our daily end of the day debriefing time we heard many personal stories from our team about the effects that serving had on their lives. One great story came from Stephanie Mayes from Synectics. As she spoke at the SIA night of Honors dinner, Steph stated that participating on the past Mission 500 Service Trip was the most impactful experience of her life.”

Nolan pointed out that while in the past Mission 500 scheduled one service trip per year, in 2019 and beyond it would like to schedule two per year. “After the trip to Puerto Rico we all realize how important it is to join together from many different organizations as one industry to get involved with some of the tragic situations we see happening around the U.S.,” he said. “As we pulled our team together, we were all amazed at how much work we accomplished in a short one-week experience.”

Mission 500 extends a big thank you to the individuals who donated their time, financial support and gifts to ensure the success of this trip, as well as to corporate sponsors including: Aiphone, Altronix Corporation, Axis Communications, BRINKS Home Security, ESA, Hikvision USA, Milestone Systems and Synetics Global.

Mission 500 is a nonprofit organization that works closely with the security industry to serve the needs of children and communities in crisis. Mission 500’s primary goal was to focus security industry efforts on sponsoring more than 500 children through World Vision’s humanitarian outreach.

For more information on Mission 500 or on how to become involved in supporting Mission 500, contact Tom Nolan at tnolan@mission500.org, or call 516-903-7291. For more information on contributions or sponsorships, please visit mission500.org or contact Jeff Eichenlaub at jeichenlaub@mission500.org.

ONVIF, a global standardization initiative for IP-based physical security products, celebrated its 10th anniversary at its annual membership meeting in early November, reflecting on its past while looking to the future.

Attendees heard presentations on the final release of Profile T in 2018, an advancement that represents how ONVIF keeps pace with technological advancements that affect product development and interoperability between IP-based physical security products.

In an acknowledgement of its 10th anniversary, ONVIF chairman Per Björkdahl highlighted the forum’s achievements over the past decade, including an overview of the six ONVIF profiles, with emphasis on the newly released Profile T for advanced video streaming. Collectively, the profiles provide support for the more than 10,000 conformant products that are increasingly included in various bid and specification processes in projects around the world, he said. Björkdahl also cited the continued involvement of ONVIF as part of the work of the International Electrotechnical Commission’s TC79 for international standardization.

ONVIF also recognized the contributions of four individuals from various ONVIF technical committees for their work on different profiles and committees. Fredrik Svensson of Axis and Dora Han of Hikvision were recipients of the ONVIF award, which acknowledges individuals and companies who have made significant contributions to ONVIF. As chairman of the Profile T Working Group, Svensson was a leading force in the development and successful final release of the Profile T specification. Han received the award for her extensions to the specification, and for supporting the development of other members’ extensions to the specification.

One of two 2018 ONVIF Distinguished Service Awards was given to Baldvin Gislason Bern of Axis for his role in developing and proofing the evolution concept as chair of the Technical Services Device Test Tool Evolution. Joining him in receiving this award is Dr. Hasan Timucin Ozdemir of Panasonic, who served as chairman from 2009-2018 of the ONVIF Video Enhancement Working Group, which is responsible for formulating and prototyping new features for the ONVIF specification.

“All of our honorees have shown their significant and long-term commitment to the organization as a whole, and in turn have directly and positively impacted the work of ONVIF,” said Björkdahl. “The success of our organization would not be possible without the innovative contributions and hard work of our members, and for that, we say thank you.”

ONVIF Technical Committee chairman, Hans Busch of Bosch, spoke to members about the specification development roadmap and its alignment to the standardization activities within the IEC TC 79 working groups for video surveillance and physical access control standards. Technical Services Committee (TSC) chair Andreas Schneider of Sony gave an overview of the committee’s work on new and existing profiles, client and device test tools, updates to the conformance process and tools and Developers’ Plugfests.

ONVIF Communication Committee chair, Tim Shen of Dahua, provided a recap of ONVIF communication efforts in 2018, with a continued focus on market education about the specific profiles through presence at industry events and media activity. He also reported on the success of the first ever ONVIF Open Source Spotlight Challenge that took place earlier this year.

At the meeting, the results of the annual elections for committees of ONVIF were announced by ONVIF executive director Kevin Schader. Re-elected to the ONVIF Steering Committee were Mayur Salgar of Honeywell and Stuart Rawling of Pelco by Schneider Electric. For the Technical Committee, Hanwha Techwin’s Sujith Raman, Pelco by Schneider Electric’s Steve Wolf, and Tyco Security Product’s Stephen Serplus were re-elected, while Hikvision’s Dora Han joined the committee as a new member. Bob Dolan of Anixter and Giri Guntipalli of Honeywell were re-elected to the Technical Services Committee, along with new member Marwan Obeidat of Pelco by Schneider Electric. Tim Shen of Dahua, Jens Berthelsen of Hikvision and Xinming Kang of Honeywell were re-elected to the ONVIF Communication Committee, while Cathy Zhou of Huawei joined the committee as a new member. Founding members Axis, Bosch and Sony automatically retain seats on the Steering, Technical and Technical Services Committees.

Founded in 2008, ONVIF is an industry forum driving interoperability for IP-based physical security products. The organization has a global member base of established camera, video management system and access control companies and more than 10,000 profile conformant products. ONVIF offers Profile S for streaming video; Profile G for recording and storage; Profile C for physical access control; Profile Q for improved out-of-the-box functionality, Profile A for broader access control configuration and Profile T for advanced streaming. ONVIF continues to work with its members to expand the number of IP interoperability solutions ONVIF conformant products can provide.

EMERgency 24, a network of wholesale monitoring centers headquartered in Des Plaines, Ill., recently named Steve Mayer its vice president of operations and administration. Mayer will replace long-time executive, Patrick Devereaux, who has retired but will remain with the company in an advisory role.

Prior to joining EMERgency24, Mayer served as the VP of operations for Cook’s Direct, an Illinois-based distribution company. He has also worked in finance, operations, corporate real estate and procurement at United Airlines, Bally Fitness and Career Education.

“Steve’s diverse professional experience will allow him to delve into Emergency24’s operations with a unique and fresh perspective,” Baird Larson, E24’s vice president and director of technology, said in the recent announcement. “We selected Steve because he demonstrated the ability to achieve strong financial, operational and customer-service performance. He has in-depth experience in strategic planning, financial analysis and process improvement.”

Like his predecessor Devereaux, Mayer is a “numbers person” and he says the company will continue to measure itself and implement ways to further strengthen operations, the company said.

“I’m excited to join a well-running and long-standing operation that is already a market leader with its people, service and technology. The culture is a great fit with my continuous improvement philosophy,” Mayer said in a prepared statement. “Emergency24 has many strengths and a tremendous future. It is very clear that our people and our technology are what attract new customers and have retained existing customers for decades. What excites me most is our opportunity to use these core strengths to grow and improve our services and customer experience.”